Understanding
by pitaC89
Summary: Ultra Magnus and Koji are both captured by the Decepticons. This gives Magnus a lot of time to think. Kinda sweet.
1. Understanding

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

AN: ONESHOT that came to me while I was writing Movieverse3. I'm officially off Hiatus.

Magnus shifted uncomfortably for what seemed like the millionth time since the Decepticons put him in this small cell hours ago. The size of the cell wasn't the problem. He'd been in placed in some that were almost like coffins without some much as a hint of discomfort.

No, his problem was that he wasn't alone. Of course some how he felt it was entirely his fault that he wasn't alone. If he hadn't been in that area of town. If he hadn't stopped to watch a group of children in the park, he wouldn't be in this mess in the first place.

What in Primus' name possessed him to stop and watch the children in the park? It was completely stupid. But the game they were playing had fascinated him. All but two of the children had stood in a line, facing the two children who were left out of the line. At some unknown signal the herd of children would take off running trying to make it past the two children that seemed to be acting the part of the predators without being caught. The children who were caught joined the 'predators', as Magnus had dubbed them. If the managed to elude the predators long enough to cross a certain point they lined up to run again. As the number of children running dwindled, Magnus was able to pick out the more fit 'prey' since they were the ones that managed to elude the predators the best. They were cunning, agile, and observant. These were things he'd relied on to keep him alive through most of the scrapes he'd managed to get himself into. And a few of these children showed the potential to be good warriors if their ability in this game was anything to go by. They'd never need it though. Earth was a relatively peaceful planet. No war engulfing it, small skirmishes between countries, but nothing major. These children were free and content to continue on in their innocence. Something he would do his best to protect for the remainder of the Autobot's stay on Earth.

While Magnus had been caught up in watching the children playing he hadn't noticed the black tanker approaching the park until it was to late. Scourge had transformed at the edge of the park closest to the children. The children, possessing some decent instincts for growing up in such a sheltered environment, had decided to scatter into the wooded area of the park where Scourge would have a harder time following them.

Scourge hadn't noticed Magnus at this point making the Bot wonder what he was there for if he wasn't looking for a fight with an Autobot. When Scourge actually did try to follow the children into the woods, Magnus understood. He was after the children to lure Optimus out.

Magnus could forgive anything else. Kidnapping a human scientist like Dr. Onishi was the kind of thing that was expected in war. Good information was the often the difference between winning and losing. But using children this way, causing fear to replace the glee that they'd felt at their game. That was more than Magnus was going to accept.

So he had charged head first into battle without thinking. He shouldn't have been surprised that Scourge had his team of Decepticons with him as backup. So Magnus got his tailpipe kicked all around that park by Ruination while Scourge still remained free to chase the children.

After he had been thoroughly beaten by Ruination Scourge returned with his prize. A human boy held securely in his hand. He was one of the children who had been among the longest standing prey. Apparently the game didn't count for much in real situations.

"Well, I was only here for the brat but two hostages won't hurt" Scourge had laughed.

That had confused Magnus. He been purposely after that particular child? Why? Then he'd taken a closer look at the boy. He was wearing different clothes than he usually did but his face was unmistakable. Onishi's kid, Koji, Optimus' human friend. The attack had been to grab the kid as blackmail against Optimus and Dr. Onishi.

Now, hours later Magnus was still berating himself for not calling Optimus when he first saw Scourge. As big a blow to his pride as it would have been to have his older brother come to his aid, it was an even bigger blow to have been captured by Megatron's forces. Plus it wasn't just his own safety he should have been worrying about, the obvious target had been among those children. Now the Onishi kid was sitting in the cell with him. Probably scared out of his mind to.

Glancing at the boy, Magnus noted that the boy hid his fear and discomfort very well. If it weren't for the slight tremble in the boy's hand's Magnus would think he was completely unaffected by his surroundings. Checking his internal chronometer he realized they'd both been in here for eight hours. While that amount of time didn't mean much to him as far as needing to refuel or recharge, he was pretty sure the boy would be getting hungry or tired soon.

The low growl he heard being emitted from the boy's stomach told him that the boy was already hungry. They had been taken sometime shortly after noon. Judging from the way the children had been playing they hadn't stopped for lunch yet. As a matter of fact that game was probably going to be the last until they returned from their respective homes after eating. So it was a reasonable assumption that the kid hadn't eaten in over twelve hours.

The shaking was getting worse, moving up to the kid's shoulders. Soon his whole body would be shaking. Even with his limited knowledge of human physiology, Magnus knew this was a very bad thing.

"You ok kid?" Magnus asked. The boy looked up at him, probably surprised that Optimus' 'arrogant, stubborn, roguish brother'----as he was sure his brother described him as to just about everyone---- had broken the eight hour silence.

The kid nodded, keeping his jaw firmly together. So he didn't want to speak to him, huh? Ultra Magnus couldn't really blame him. The kid practically hero-worshiped Prime, and Prime's disapproval was bound to have rubbed off on the boy. Plus he wouldn't have taken kindly to Magnus' action toward his friends. He probably could have handled the three stooges a little better than kidnapping them and shocking them like he had when he first arrived.

Magnus nudged his foot against the boy's side to get him to look back up at him. He was surprised when then boy flinched away shuddering. Did the kid dislike him that much? Or was he afraid Magnus would hurt him? Even after Magnus had jumped in to defend the kids that afternoon? What kind of slag had Prime been spouting about him?

Click. Click. Click.

Magnus looked back down at the boy. Despite his obvious efforts the boy's teeth were clicking together rapidly. And the shaking was becoming more pronounced. That meant something important. When a human shook like that it was a sign that they were… something that definitely wasn't good. What was it? Realization clicked and Magnus checked the room temperature. His sensors told him the room temperature was forty-eight degrees Fahrenheit. The boy wasn't afraid of him, he was freezing.

It had been a warm afternoon in Japan. Instead of his usual attire, the boy had donned a sleeveless black shirt, a pair of jean shorts that reached his knee, and a pair of black sandals. Fine for playing in the park on a summer day but not so great for being held prisoner in a mobile base that was probably somewhere very far from the equator.

"Damnit kid, you should have said something" Magnus grumbled. The kid looked up at him surprised. Magnus sighed, reached down and picked the boy. Then he gently place the child on his chest, overtop of his spark chamber, the warmest part of his body. It would keep the boy warm enough.

Sure enough the boy's shuddering slowly died down and the boy relaxed for the first time since they arrived.

"Thank you" the kid--- Koji---spoke for the first time since...well the kid had never really spoken to him before.Koji looked up at him with a tired smile, showing his gratitude for the warmth. Then he slowly drifted off to sleep, finally warm enough to do so with out fear of not waking up.

Magnus smiled. There was definitely more to this kid than he originally thought. He'd been cold, tired, scared, and hungry but hadn't complained once in eight hours. Maybe Optimus hadn't just taken to him out of pity. There was definitely a certain strength under his innocent appearance.

Magnus placed a gentle hand over him. Strength or no strength, he wouldn't stand a chance if Optimus was unwilling or unable to comply with Megatron's demands, which would undoubtedly bring Megatron's rage down on the child. So if anyone came through that door with the intent to harm Koji they'd have to deal with him first.

* * *

A few hours later Optimus and the Autobot brothers, having finally located Megatron's base by tracking the signal from Koji's communicator, were surprised to find Magnus in recharge, with his arms still providing a shield over Koji. And Koji sleeping peacefully, without fear of whatever dangers might be lurking outside the door. 

AN: the game they were playing was sharks and minnows. R&R


	2. A Day at the Park

ADDITIONAL NOTES: This was already posted as 'A Day at the Park'. I'm making it a series. Another Ultra Magnus POV will be added soon and then one from Sideburn, Prowl, and X-brawn's POV

Disclaimer: I own nothing you freaks.

AN: I was at a water park recently and this just begged to be written. Plus I'm feeling weird due to the fact school starts in six days and I'm not dreading it.

"Sky-byte, come on!" Koji urged the reluctant shark toward the main gate to purchase their tickets.

"Koji, this might not be the best place for me to spend the day with you. My kind really doesn't mix well with water parks." Sky-byte tried to explain.

"You mean Predicons?" Koji asked innocently.

"Sharks, Koji. My alternate form is a shark. Remember?"

"Yeah I remember. But that's half the fun" Koji smiled innocently.

"Huh?" Sky-byte asked.

"Just come on"

EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE

"This is it?" Sky-byte asked, taking in the small park that consisted of a small wave pool, two kiddie areas, and five water slides.

"Yup, it's the cheapest and least crowded park in the area… Well actually that one is in North Beach but that one broke some chicks collar bone cause the water pressure on the slide was way too high" Koji explained sitting down under the huge umbrella to apply some sunscreen.

"This is not going to end well" Sky-byte commented, already imagining the dangers that could befall Koji in a place like this. What would the Autobots do if they found out Koji got hurt while hanging out with Sky-byte? What would they do if they found out Sky-byte had been anywhere near Koji? Probably the same thing they'd done when they found him talking to Koji the day Dr. Onishi escaped.

"Come on, lets hit the wave pool" Koji suggested.

EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE

Koji lay back on the clear inner tube, enjoying the sunlight. He felt slightly guilty about dragging Sky-byte here. The shark wasn't enjoying their trip so much. Whether it was because of the people's reaction to him or the nagging worries that the Autobots would find out about this little escapade, Koji couldn't be sure but he was pretty sure it was a combination of the two. It probably hadn't been the brightest idea to bring an enemy with him but going alone wouldn't be very fun and his dad was buried in his work. Sideburn and his brothers also didn't seem to have time to spend with him either.

Looking over to where Sky-byte was floating belly up in an attempt to discourage the children who alternated between screaming in terror, poking him, and asking for autographs, Koji couldn't help but feel better.

EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE

"This is degrading" Sky-byte complained sitting in the deep end of the kiddie area(3ft), under that little umbrella thing that poured water down.

Koji swam underwater to avoid getting hit by the sprinkles coming down from the rim of the umbrella. He surfaced next to Sky-byte.

"Why'd you do that?" he asked.

"Do what?" Koji asked.

"Why did you swim under it. All you accomplished was getting thoroughly wet instead of just a little" Sky-byte pointed out.

"What's the point of only doing something half way?" Koji laughed, smiling that 'sunny day' smile of his.

Instead of thinking about how irrational humans were and how annoying it was, Sky-byte was surprised to realize how endearing the trait was in this human in particular.

EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE

Koji stood on the top platform that connected to the water slides. He could see Sky-byte standing near the near the splash pool that the slides dumped into. It felt good to have someone to spend the day with, to just hang out with. Someone there so he didn't feel so alone at times.

Since the incident with Scourge at the park, all his old friends avoided him for their own safety. And honestly he didn't blame them. It had completely terrified him when Scourge came out of nowhere and grabbed him. Then the next eight or so hours had been hell too. They'd have been worse if he'd been alone.

Koji thanked god that Magnus had been there with him. He knew good and well that if he had been alone he would have froze to death before the Autobots could reach him.

Koji smiled before walking over to the yellow slide, sitting down, and pushing off.

EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE

"Wasn't that fun?" Koji asked as they left the park near sunset.

"It was alright I suppose. You are aware that I was suppose to kidnap you today right?" Sky-byte asked.

Koji shrugged before freezing up suddenly. It didn't take long for Sky-byte to realize the reason for the boy's sudden change in mood. There, thirty yards away in the parking lot with the setting sun to his back stood Ultra Magnus.

His stance spoke of annoyance, possibly rage. But his eyes spoke of …hurt? That couldn't be right.

Feeling strangely like a cowboy in an old western movie, Sky-byte tried not let his nervousness show.

Magnus broke the spell by breaking eye contact with Sky-byte and turning his gaze to Koji.

"Prowl overheard reports of a Predicon sighting at a water park. Your father mentioned that you told him you were going to spend the day here. I figured I just drop by to make sure Megatron wasn't trying to have you kidnapped again" Magnus stated.

"I'm fine. I was just headed home" Koji said softly.

"I see. Prime would want me to escort you home to make sure you get there without incident" Magnus said professionally. All while avoiding looking at Sky-byte.

"Ok" Koji said hefting his bag onto his shoulder and walking toward the Autobot.

"You" Magnus said turning toward Sky-byte. "You were never here and will not be in contact with Koji again"

Knowing this was his only chance to leave unscathed, Sky-byte took it, nodding and then hurrying away.

EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE

There was no group of Autobots out for his hide the next day. It seemed Magnus had kept quiet about finding him with Koji. Probably more for Koji's sake that his.

In the past month Megatron had come to notice that there was a rift forming between Koji and the Autobot brothers. He'd sent Sky-byte out yesterday to exploit it. He hadn't been pleased to find out that due to the rift, Koji had formed a bond of friendship with Ultra Magnus. Or perhaps that bond was the cause of the rift. There was no way they could be certain.

But Megatron _was_ happy to realize that Koji's value had doubled in the past month. Now, not only was Koji a weak spot to Prime, but to Ultra Magnus as well.

A weak spot Megatron fully intended to exploit.

AN: This was supposed to be humor in the beginning but developed into something else.


	3. Talk

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

AN: Somebody wanted this to become a series so here it is.

Magnus seemed to ending up at this park a lot lately. He often found himself coming here to think. More accurately, he often found himself coming here to mope.

He wasn't one to dwell on his failures. And this park represented a very recent, very big failure. What kind of Autobot couldn't protect one simple human child from a couple Decepticons? Prime protected millions of humans on a regular basis. Prime had let his guard down very few of times, but never while there were _any _humans in danger. But when his time came, he didn't even see it coming. Primus, the kids had seen Scourge before he did. How pathetic was that? How pathetic was _he_?

Then he couldn't stop Scourge from taking Koji, and he ended up getting himself captured in the process. In the end all he had been able to do was keep Koji from freezing to death in that tiny little cell, and he hadn't even realized the boy was cold until his teeth started chattering and the boy's shaking had become uncontrollable. The boy could have died in silence for all the attention Magnus had paid him while they were both trapped in the enemy base.

"You're spending an awful lot of time here lately" a young voice echoed his earlier thoughts.

Magnus looked to the side to see Koji standing near him on the sidewalk. Though it had only been a few months since that day, Magnus could visibly see the changes in the boy. His face was losing it's childish roundness, becoming more angular like his father's. His eyes had been becoming duller since the day Magnus had found him with Sky-byte. With the season his clothes had changed as well. He was wearing long pants and a dark, oversized jacket that probably belonged to his father.

"What are you doing here kid?" Magnus asked.

Koji raised an inquisitive eyebrow. " 'Kid'? I thought you were finally using my name" he said.

"I'm in a bad mood kid" Magnus growled.

Koji smiled slightly. "Well I'm not in the best of moods either" he said glancing at the field where there was almost always a group of children playing.

"I haven't seen you playing with them for awhile" Magnus commented as the children started their game of soccer.

"After Scourge decided to break up our last game they figured it was safer to stay away from me" Koji answered with a touch of sadness.

Magnus snorted. These children were to sheltered for their own good. Being shot at or chased down by the enemy might do them good.

He didn't think about how a few months ago he would have given anything to preserve these same children's innocence. If he had thought of that, he would have told himself that a few months ago they hadn't been hurting his friend.

"I'm not that good at soccer anyway" Koji shrugged.

"Whatever you say Koji". He saw Koji give a small half smile.

"So… how's it going?" Magnus asked, uncomfortably searching for a safer topic.

"Alright I guess" Koji said. There was just a hint of sadness in the boy's tone.

"The three stooges still giving you problems?" So it wasn't a safer topic, but Koji needed to talk about it.

"Not really… Sideburn's been acting like a jerk but for the most part he just ignores me" Koji said.

"He's an idiot"

Koji chuckled slightly at Magnus' blunt statement. But it wasn't a happy sound. Magnus could tell that Sideburn's continued hostility towards Koji still hurt the boy. Sideburn really was an idiot. Whatever reason Sideburn had for treating Koji so badly Magnus was sure it wasn't worth it.

"They don't treat you much better" Koji said.

"I'm use to it"

"… But it still hurts"

Damn, the kid had noticed. "I'm use to it" he repeated.

"They don't know you other than the few battles they fought with you and against you. They've judged you by that, and they found you lacking. That hurts." Koji said.

"I don't care what the three stooges think of me" Magnus asserted.

"Maybe. But you do care what Optimus thinks. Despite all the 'stealing the Matrix' issues you've got with him, he's still your big brother and you still want to make him proud."

Damn kid was too insightful.

"Koji--" Magnus wanted to deny what Koji had just said but it was true. He wanted Optimus to be proud of him. Even when he hated Optimus he still wanted his respect. Always had.

"I'm not likely to do that now, am I?" he asked, dejectedly.

"We all make mistakes. He knows that and he's made more than his fair share of them himself"

"So you think he'd forgive me if I apologized?"

"If you gave him a sincere apology. But you can't do that right now, can you?"

No he couldn't. He still wanted the Matrix. And he'd still fight Prime for it.

Their conversation was then interrupted by someone humming and singing a catchy jingle. "_Oh who's the smartest shark in town? Sky-byte! That's me!_"

Magnus and Koji stared at each other for a moment. Then Koji's face broke out into a real grin. "Hehehe. Do you think he realizes he's announcing his presence to every kid within four blocks?" Koji giggled.

"Probably not" Magnus commented as the children on the field abandoned their game to follow the sound of Sky-byte's voice.

"You kind of have to feel sorry for him. He tries so hard to be terrifying and fails so miserably" Koji chuckled.

"Which would explain why you decided to take him to the water park" Magnus stated.

"Actually that was because he was a shark."

"… Huh?"

"I wanted to see look on peoples' faces when they saw him swimming around in the wave pool" Koji said. "And trust me, it was worth it when this big guy jumped at least six feet out of the water screaming like a little girl"

Magnus smiled to himself. There was a reason he liked this kid.

AN: That suck oh well. R&R. Next up, The Autobot brothers.


	4. Varying Viewpoints

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

AN: Autobot brothers' POV with a little Magnus Sideburn confrontation at the end.… Sideburn might seem like he's being irrational but hardly anybody is rational when their upset and worried about something(one) they love. Trust me on that. I just spent an entire night in tears because my kitten was missing and I almost stormed my (evil) neighbors' house to accuse them of stealing her even though my better judgment told me that she was just off exploring and would come back on her own. Which she did by the way, around nine o'clock at night _after_ I almost cried myself to sleep. Evil kitty.

Chapter 4

X-brawn had noticed the current strife between Koji and Sideburn but was at a loss as to what he should do about it. The growing distance between his brother and their friend was a concern to both Prowl and himself.

The start of the rift was somewhere around the time Koji was kidnapped by Scourge. Sideburn had been inconsolable for the twelve hours that they had frantically searched for the Predicon base. But when they did find the base and had subsequently found Koji, something had changed in Sideburn. Something about Ultra Magnus being there, protectively guarding their friend from the cold and any other enemy who might wish the boy harm had set off something in Sideburn. Over the next few weeks Sideburn had made his displeasure about Koji's growing friendship with Ultra Magnus known. For the most part Koji was undeserving of Sideburn's anger; the only thing he really did to continue the rift was not caving to Sideburn's demands that he stop spending time with Ultra Magnus.

X-brawn himself didn't really have a problem with Koji's friendship with Ultra Magnus. In fact he was kind of happy about it. Koji seemed to have a calming effect on the rogue, which made working with him a lot easier. And in return Ultra Magnus gave Koji someone to talk to when he was lonely. X-brawn knew Dr. Onishi couldn't spend as much time with his son as he use to, since he was doing so many extra projects for Optimus. And Sideburn wouldn't provide very scintillating or comforting conversation while the two were still at odds.

As much as he hated that his brother and the human were both hurting he really couldn't think of anyway to make them get along again that wasn't just as likely to make things worse.

* * *

Prowl couldn't help but be disappointed with the way Sideburn was acting. It was childish really. He could understand that his brother felt a little jealous about the amount of time Koji was spending with Magnus but telling the boy flat out to stop spending time with him wasn't right. 

Sideburn was use to having Koji's complete attention. He didn't like to share Koji with someone else. All in all his little brother was just acting like a child who'd discarded a toy and was upset when another child picked it up. And honestly Koji deserved better than that from his friends.

* * *

Koji wasn't there again today, probably off with one of his human friends. Or with Ultra Magnus… Not that _he_ cared. Whatever Koji did was his own business. Sideburn couldn't care less who Koji hung out with. 

But why did it have to be Ultra Magnus? The 'Bot was a rogue. He only cared about getting the Matrix from Optimus. Ultra Magnus had no problem attacking him and his brothers to get at Optimus, how did they know he wouldn't do the exact same thing to Koji? This whole 'friendship' thing could just be away to get at Optimus through Koji. But would Koji even consider the fact that he was being used? No, he actually stood up for Magnus when Sideburn brought it up.

As if that weren't enough, Optimus ignored his suspicions as well. Was it that unbelievable that Ultra Magnus might try to get at them through Koji? For primus sake Scourge had just tried the same thing only a few months ago. Ultra Magnus had been right in the middle of it too. How did they know that he hadn't been in on that whole thing? It could have just been a way to gain Koji's trust. Then when the time came, he would jump into action grab Koji and make demands. Including surrender and the Matrix.

Sideburn couldn't do anything about it now. He'd just have to keep waiting and watching Ultra Magnus.

* * *

The base was relatively quiet when Magnus got back after dropping Koji off at home. He and Koji had had to rescue Sky-byte from his adoring fans, something Magnus hadn't been happy about. But he _had_ taken the opportunity to rough the Predicon up a bit. Not too bad, the children would have rioted if he'd tried to do Sky-byte any major damage. So with a few punches to the midsection and a glare that could make even Prime cower in terror, he had sent the shark on his merry way. 

Now he was looking forward to some R&R. What was the point of moving into the base, thereby being under the constant scrutiny of his brother, if he couldn't take advantage of the comfortable recharge berth he'd been assigned?

Unfortunately fate was apparently not on his side right now. Who should he meet in the hall on the way to his room? None other than Sideburn.

His conversation with Koji still fresh in his mind, along with the hurt in the boy's voice when he spoke of the Autobot brothers, Magnus couldn't suppress a glare at the 'Bot that was causing Koji so much pain.

Surprisingly, at least to Magnus, Sideburn met that glare with one of his own. So the young Autobot was looking for a fight, huh? As much as Magnus would have liked to oblige him, he doubted Koji or Optimus would be very happy with him if he did. So he merely moved to go around the angry 'Bot.

Sideburn right back into his way.

"Look _kid_" The nickname held none of the affection it did when he was referring to Koji. "I ain't in the mood right now so I suggest you get out of the way so I can get to my room"

Sideburn continued to glare, but said nothing. Magnus stood up straighter, crossed his arms, sent the dirtiest look he had at the 'Bot, and moved to go around him again. Not surprisingly, Sideburn moved into his way again.

"Move" Magnus ordered.

"No"

Magnus was temped to reach out and slap him. Arrogant little bastard. Primus, was this how Optimus saw him? It was a wonder he wasn't dead yet. Magnus felt the respect he had for his brother go up a notch.

"What are you up to?" Sideburn demanded.

"At the moment I'm trying to go to my room to rest. But unfortunately there is a young, idiotic jerk in my way, so I'm stuck here talking to you" Magnus growled.

"No, what are you planning to do to Koji?" Sideburn demanded.

This joker couldn't be serious.

"What?" Magnus asked, truly confused.

"What are you planning? What are going to do to him?" Sideburn demanded.

"Look, other than driving him to the Mall tomorrow, I really haven't thought that far ahead"

"You're going to try and hurt him!" Sideburn accused.

Magnus snorted. "The last time I checked you're the only one around that's been hurting Koji"

Sideburn glared "I'm not hurting him!"

"Then why has he been so depressed since you two had your falling out? Why is it that whenever you come up in a conversation he always tries to change the subject? Why does he find it necessary to hang out with near strangers because there's no one else to keep him company?" Magnus demanded, only a hairs breath away from slamming Sideburn into the wall and waling on him. The idiot was just begging for a beating.

"He can hang out with other kids if he wants to!"

"Who?! They've all avoided him since Scourge decided to kidnap him. They're afraid they'll get caught in the crossfire!"

Sideburn froze, confusion replacing rage on his face. He apparently hadn't known about Koji's pariah status with the other children. Magnus took advantage of this and shoved past him and went to his room.

AN: Sucks I know. There should be a little action coming up soon. Also please excuse my horrible Cybertronian terminology.


	5. Things Fall Apart

Disclaimer: I own nothing

AN: Sorry for the delay. School. This is my last year of high school and I'd like to walk in May. Koji and Sideburn angst ahead.

Could it be true? Could it really have been that simple all along?

It very well could be. If all of Koji's old friends were treating him like a pariah because of what happened with Scourge then it stood to reason that he would go looking for new friends. And since the Scourge incident was the beginning of their issues or rather, Sideburn grudgingly admitted, _his_ issues; Koji had had no one at the base to turn to. Well no one except the arrogant rogue who spent most of his time completely disregarding his duty in favor of his own selfish pursuits.

Thinking back on everything that had happened, all the fights, all the petty disagreements, everything; Sideburn found that Koji really wasn't to blame for any of it. Ultra Magnus had shown Koji true kindness in the past few months, which was a lot more than he'd done himself.

This would all be so much easier if he had some idea about what he should do now. If he were Prowl he'd probably write a three-page letter formally begging forgiveness from the wronged party. If he were X-brawn, he'd probably stumble through a sheepish, stuttering apology. But unlike his brothers Sideburn, never one to admit he was wrong, had little experience with apologies.

He wanted to just call and leave Koji a message but some part of his processor that was dedicated to etiquette told him that a situation like this would require a face to face meeting.

* * *

Had there always been a stain there? He couldn't remember it being there before. Which if it had he probably would have notices since this had been his room for nearly eleven years. Maybe it had just appeared out of nowhere while he was out today. Or maybe the roof was leaking and he'd wake up tomorrow completely drenched. Never mind that there were no pipes running over his room and there hadn't been so much as a drizzle of rain in weeks. 

Hmmm. If he looked at it sideways it kind of looked like a potato clock. Or was it a flower? Oh wait, from this angle it looked like a cat. Huh. That was an interesting way to pass… a quick glance at his watch… three whole minutes. A new record for him. Three minutes, his all time best.

Was it too early to call Magnus back? The guy really wasn't a big talker and after their discussion today the former rogue would probably need time to 'process'. Maybe he should call Carl. Carl might be avoiding coming within forty feet of him but he'd still answer the phone if his old best buddy called just to chat.

Ah hell, what would they talk about anyway? That super cool soccer game Koji had been excluded from this afternoon? Or maybe the baseball game last week where Carl's team, sans Koji who used to co-captain with him for all their sports teams, had beaten their rivals from a neighboring district. He'd have loved to be the one to slam that ball right down the throat of other team's cocky pitcher. Oh well. Maybe he could make the team when they got to high school.

Huh, there was another stain. This one looked like a cookie… or was it a stealth bomber? Honestly it could be either one.

Koji sighed, trying not to think of the good old days when he had better things to do with his time than just lay in bed staring up at the ceiling.

He rolled out of bed and dropped to the floor with much more grace than he had the night his father was kidnapped. It was amazing what you could do when you weren't half asleep. He decided to head to the living room. Somewhere in this house there had to be a video game he hadn't beaten yet.

* * *

Stupid idiots. Why the hell had he agreed to move into the base again? Oh yeah, free room and board. No more going into recharge in caves or truck stop parking lots. No more wondering whether it was safe or not to drift off for a while. No more waking up to some idiot car thieves trying to make a quick buck. 

Slag, the Mech in the next room was pacing again. He understood that Prime had his troops sleeping in shifts, but couldn't the bots that were on the same sleep schedule be put in the same wing of the barracks so that idiots getting ready for their next shift didn't wake anybody up? Was that really too much to ask?

Another screeching sound from next door. Was that one of the Build Team members… singing?

Just then that truck stop in North America was looking like a pretty good place to turn in for the night.

* * *

Sideburn had made his decision. First thing in the morning he was heading over to the Onishi's house and asking to speak with Koji. With any luck Koji would agree to speak to him. Well, if Dr. Onishi would allow it. The man might not have had much time to spend with his son lately but he was still aware of the falling out. And the good doctor could be down right stubborn when it came to protecting his son. 

He could worry about over protective fathers in the morning. Right now he was going over what he would say tomorrow in his head. 'Hey Koji, sorry for being a jackass.' Or 'Sorry, I just got a little jealous that you found a new friend'. Those would both go over well. How about 'I'm really sorry for being stupid, please forgive me'. No, that wouldn't work either.

If nothing better came to him before morning he could always go with an old classic.

'Sorry'.

* * *

Light was spilling in through the skylight next to his bed. Must be morning. Sunday morning. Damn, it was still the weekend. 

What to do with his day? His bike had a flat tire, so heading to the BMX track was out. He'd already blown most of his allowance at the arcade yesterday so he couldn't go back to try to beat his high score on DDR. The mall was closed on Sunday, meaning no window-shopping.

Koji briefly considered just staying home and reading but brushed it aside. He never knew when Optimus or his father would decide to put him on lockdown for his own 'protection'. That happened far to often for him not to at least try to enjoy his free time.

Maybe Magnus would be free today to take him up to that nature park he'd wanted to visit. Koji grabbed his cell phone. Flipping it open he was surprised to see the screen flashing, he had two messages.

The first message was from Magnus. "'Hey kid, sorry but I got to get out of here. Build Boy's singing karaoke next door. If you need me I'll be in Breezewood'". Well that put an end to his nature park plans.

The second message was a little different. "'…Koji?'" Koji's eyes widened. "'We need to talk'" Sideburn voice wavered. He was audibly nervous. "'I'll be over in the morning'" The message ended with a click.

Oh god.

Koji felt his insides freeze up. No way. He couldn't do this. He hurriedly threw on a pair of faded blue jeans and a baggy long sleeve black shirt. He took the stairs three at a time, grabbed his father's old brown coat as he went out the door, all the while calling himself everything from a hypocrite to a coward. Just yesterday he'd been pushing Ultra Magnus to face his own problems and try to forge a half way decent relationship with Optimus. And he himself couldn't even face his own demons. God, he was a pathetic.

So what if Sideburn had said some nasty things. Magnus had probably heard far worse in his time. Hell, Koji knew for a fact Magnus was still being treated like dirt by most of the Autobots. If Magnus could put up with the constant slurs then Koji should be able to face one seemingly apologetic friend.

Unfortunately there was one big difference between Koji and Magnus. Koji was a child, a hurt child at that. He hadn't learned to put up shields and defenses against harsh words yelled at him by people he cared about. While words still hurt Magnus, the Mech never had to hide in an unused closet until the tears stopped and the red splotches faded from his cheeks. Koji did, just because Sideburn had called him a stupid, gullible, little kid.

Yup, he was pathetic, just like Sideburn said.

He got about a block from his house before the sound of a familiar engine approaching sent Koji scrambling for the nearest alley. He ducked behind a garbage can just in time. Sideburn drove by slowly, for once obeying the speed limit. Actually Koji was fairly sure that Sideburn was going well under the speed limit. He certainly wasn't in a hurry to get where he was going. Koji felt a pang of sadness. He remembered a time when Sideburn would speed down his street, slowing down only enough for Koji to hop in, then speeding off again towards another adventure.

Whatever Sideburn had had to say, Koji seriously doubted they'd ever be able to go back to those days. Their adventures together were over.

Once he was certain Sideburn was gone Koji decided to head back to the street. He didn't have much time. Sideburn would be doubling back once he realized Koji wasn't at home.

Before he got two feet a shadow fell over him. A very large shark shaped shadow. He turned to find a very depressed Sky-byte hovering behind him.

"Sky-byte, what's wrong?" Koji could practically feel the misery rolling off his friend.

Sky-byte's mood, if possible, sank even lower. "I'm sorry Koji. Orders" he said by way of explanation.

There was a loud scraping sound behind him. Koji spun around, a feeling of dread and déjà vu hardening in his stomach. Scourge was at the mouth of the alley, cutting off any chance of escape.

* * *

Things had been set in motion. Soon Prime and his Autobots would be no longer be a threat. Earth's energy resources would be his. All because Prime was easily manipulated when that boy's life was at stake. 

AN: Sorry if this seems a little different, but I need to start steering toward a resolution. R&R.


	6. Things Come Together

Disclaimer: I own nothing. Arch Angel Ben gave suggestions.

AN: Hi. Back. Sorry. Excuse the grammar

The nature preserve was beautiful. It reminded him of the good old days, back when he and Koji would go for drives to nowhere just because they could. When they were bored they'd gone to Kyoto to see the temples. When Koji had missed his Dad one day they went to Egypt to see the pyramids and the Sphinx. When Sideburn was tired of Prowl giving him speeding tickets they'd gone to Montana, well until the law changed anyway. When Koji wanted to see the northern lights they'd gone to Alaska and played in the snow. That time Sideburn wanted to find out what the big deal was about that leaning building they'd gone to Pisa and Koji had eaten some bad pasta. Poor kid was sick all the way home.

Hell, they'd even gone to that one place. What was it called again? It was that place all the stars talked about when they were asked what they were going to do next. Diney Lynd? Dyno Park? No wait, Disney Land! That place had been great even if he had been too big for most of the rides. He'd watched as Koji rode most of them till the he puked up the corn dog and cotton candy lunch he'd had when they first got there.

That was back when they'd done everything together. Back when they'd been the best of friends. Then he'd ruined it all because he was an idiot. He'd been jealous because when Koji needed him he hadn't been there. But Magnus had. Ultra Magnus had been the one to rush to Koji's rescue. Ultra Magnus had been there when Koji was cold and hungry. Ultra Magnus had been there when Koji was scared.

Not him. He was the one who'd been with Koji every time he'd started to lose faith that his father would be brought back to him. He was the one who'd come to Koji's rescue in the past. But not anymore. Magnus did that now.

* * *

Stupid humans. 

'Stupid cops' Magnus amended to himself, unwilling to insult Koji in even a roundabout way. He'd woken up to some cop trying to get into his cab to poke around. Something about a trucker that was going cross-country, picking up kids, and slitting their throats. Unwillingly, the image of Koji in a similar position flittered across his mind yet again. That image was the reason he hadn't been able to go back into recharge after he told the cop to beat it. He'd been too afraid that once he was in recharge mode, the images would become unbearable.

Nightmares, Koji called the images. Humans had them all the time.

So did Magnus. For years they'd been giving him grief, waking him from a sound recharge, tormenting him with his worst fears. Annoyingly enough, before he came to Earth, the usual star of his nightmares was Optimus. Yes, as loath as he was to admit it, one of his worst fears was that Optimus would die before he did.

It was one of the reasons he had pulled so far away from Optimus. Well, other than the Matrix anyway.

His nightmares were also the reason he knew he was getting too attached to Koji. The boy was starting to appear in his nightmares with the same annoying regularity as Optimus.

* * *

"No. No. NO!" T-Ai screamed as she felt the control of the Global Space Bridge slipping away. 

An hour ago they had received what added up to a ransom demand from Megatron. He demanded the immediate surrender of the Autobots to his forces. And that Prime come in person to make the surrender official. Their leverage was Koji.

They couldn't comply though. Optimus couldn't take that risk, even for Koji. Besides, Megatron rarely kept his word. What guarantee did they have that Koji would be released unharmed? None.

This would not stop them from mounting a rescue though. And they did. Optimus gathered the majority of his forces; all that were available anyway. Sideburn couldn't be reached and Magnus had run off the night before. The Spychangers and Team Bullet train were both on assignment elsewhere.

She had thought that maybe it was a computer glitch that allowed her to track the signal. She should have known it was a trap. If it weren't Koji's life that was on the line she _would_ have realized it was a trap. But she hadn't, and now the Autobots were trapped in the Global Space Bridge. And Koji's life was still on the line.

"No" T-Ai almost sobbed.

* * *

It wasn't like they ran off half-cocked. They had waited until it could be verified that Koji was actually missing before running off to save him. 

Fifteen minutes after the original ransom they received confirmation from Dr. Onishi that Koji had left home that morning just after nine; twenty minutes before the time the Decepticons said that they captured him.

Thirty-five minutes after the first ransom demand was delivered, they received a second, which included Koji's cell phone. Proof that at some point the Decepticons actually had Koji.

"Optimus?" That would be X-brawn come to talk to him again. He's been strangely in tune with his commander's mood. He had assured Optimus several times that even though they were trapped here; there were still Autobots out there who can rescue Koji.

Optimus would have felt much better if the two Autobot in question weren't Sideburn and Magnus. Not that he didn't trust them. Magnus had been rather agreeable these past few months and Sideburn had all but ignored Earth's population of red sports cars since his and Koji's falling out. But to be honest, the two Autobots hated each other.

Sideburn had made no secret about who he blamed for his and Koji's falling out. As far as the blue Mech was concerned, Magnus had set out with the single-minded purpose of destroying his friendship with Koji.

Magnus, who for once was an innocent party, strongly disapproved of Sideburn's conduct toward Koji… Well actually he was just pissed that Koji was hurting and Sideburn was mostly to blame.

Optimus just couldn't see those two banding together to save anything, not even Koji.

* * *

"MAGNUS!" screeched over his comm-link. 

"Ack! Damnit, don't do that" Magnus growled, quickly jumping back into his lane before he ran head long into a Hazmat Tanker.

"Not now, we have a problem" T-Ai announced.

"Well we'd better if you're screeching in my audios like that" Magnus grumbled.

"Optimus, The Build team, and two of The Autobot Brothers are trapped in the Global Space Bridge"

"I'm not a fragging repair-Mech" Magnus growled.

"They were trapped there by Megatron"

"What!?"

"Just get to back to the base. I'll explain then"

* * *

"Ok" Sideburn agreed as T-Ai closed the comm-link. The time for wallowing in self-pity was over. His brothers and his teammates were in danger. Koji was missing. 

It was time to get to work.

* * *

He'd been running for hours it seemed. His lungs were burning and his side had cramped up. His whole body was shaking with exhaustion. The tree branches were tearing at his face and clothes. 

The ground beneath his feet began to slope downward. Running with the slope, he picked up speed.

In a matter of minutes he finally broke through the tree line… and then found himself sprawled across the hood of a car.

"…Koji?"

He opened his eyes to find the surprisingly welcome sight of a familiar blue viper.

"Sideburn?"

AN: R&R. Took awhile. Sorry, Senior year and graduation is approaching.


	7. Unexpected Alliance

Disclaimer: I own nothing but the computer this was written on. Yay. If anyone tries to take this computer, they will feel the wrath of Cyanide, my cat who is shockingly cuddling against my side at this moment.

AN: I've posted an edited, easier on the eyes version of this fic series on my livejournal and my Transformers RiD community. If anyone's interested the links are on my profile page.

He shouldn't have left. He could have ignored Wedge's singing. He could have used that stupid radio he'd borrowed from Koji to drown out the bad karaoke. He could have done any number of things differently so that he would have been here this morning. If he'd been there, Koji would have asked him for a ride or something. Hell, just last week the boy had been talking about going to some nature park. Maybe he and Koji would have been there this morning.

And if they'd been there together chances were both he and Koji would be prisoners together, just like that day last summer. At least this way he could do something other than just sitting around waiting for rescue.

"Have they called with any other demands?" he asked.

T-Ai shook her head. "No. They haven't even called to gloat."

"How many Autobots are available if we need them?"

"Just you and Sideburn. Everyone else is either trapped with Optimus or on assignment and can't be reached," T-Ai explained.

Not good. If he needed to coordinate a rescue operation he could make do with only one other soldier. What he couldn't do is work with someone who was just as likely to put a knife in his back as follow his orders.

"Where is Sideburn right now?" he asked.

"He should be arriving soon. I contacted him right after I called you," T-Ai answered. "Dr. Onishi is on his way too."

Ultra Magnus nodded. They'd need Dr. Onishi's help with the Space Bridge. And, Magnus supposed, the doctor would like to be kept apprised of his son's situation. Not that the good doctor had shown much interest in his son in the past few months, but still, the man was Koji's father.

"T-Ai!" Dr. Onishi's voice preceded his footsteps down the hall. Ultra Magnus cast the man a glance. Onishi looked harried and anxious. The man seemed to have aged a decade since Ultra Magnus had last seen him.

"Is there any news?" Desperation tinged his voice. So Koji's father did care, he never would have guessed.

"No, Doctor," T-Ai informed Koji's father sorrowfully. Ultra Magnus frowned. T-Ai was good at her job, but she was also extremely attached to Koji. There was a chance she'd let that interfere with her duty, like his brother obviously had. There was nothing he could do about that now. He'd have to trust T-Ai to do her job to the best of her ability despite the circumstances. He had no other choice.

Dr. Onishi shoulders sagged. He seemed truly worried for his son's safety. He glanced from T-Ai to Ultra Magnus. "It's just you two?" he asked.

"Sideburn's on his way. Everyone else is either unavailable or trapped with Optimus," T-Ai acknowledged.

The good doctor looked far from relieved. To be honest Magnus didn't blame him. Onishi didn't think much of him, with good reason admittedly. A few months of friendship with Koji wasn't enough to redeem Ultra Magnus in the eyes of Koji's father, or anyone else really.

"How far out is Sideburn?" Dr. Onishi asked.

"Only a few minutes," T-Ai answered. "I contacted him right after Ultra Magnus… Actually I'm pretty sure Sideburn was considerably closer to base than Magnus when I contacted him," she finished, brow furrowing in confusion.

"Then how did I beat him here?" Ultra Magnus didn't like this. Sideburn was younger and faster than him, he should have been able to beat him to the base by a good few minutes.

The computer pinged, announcing that someone with an Autobot pass code was using the north gate. That would be Sideburn. Ultra Magnus debated whether he should risk a confrontation by demanding the reason for Sideburns delay. Deciding he couldn't afford to be at odds with Sideburn right now he let the matter drop.

"What can I do to help?" Dr. Onishi directed his query at T-Ai.

"I need some help cracking the program Megatron used to lockdown the Space Bridge," T-Ai answered. "I'm close but this last strand of code is giving me some problems."

Latching onto the distraction, Koji's father moved to stand by T-Ai, taking in the information on the display like parched man would a cold glass of water. Good, the sooner those two figured this out the better. Meanwhile Ultra Magnus need to find out what was taking Sideburn so long. He should have easily been able to cover the distance from the north gate to the control room by now.

Turning to leave, Ultra Magnus was surprised to find the command room door sliding open to reveal a hunched over Sideburn and—

"Koji!"

Ultra Magnus wasn't sure whether it was T-Ai or Dr. Onishi who yelled, if it wasn't both, but it was the doctor who sprinted across the room to his son. Seeing Dr. Onishi's approach Sideburn, who had been walking hunched over supporting Koji, pulled back to allow the doctor to pull his son into an embrace. Ultra Magnus wasn't surprised to see Koji return it, but he did wonder why Koji was clutching an empty red tinged bottle in his hand.

"How did you get away?" T-Ai asked the only sensible question.

Koji pulled back from his father. "I didn't. After they took my cell phone Sky-byte dropped me off in the woods a few miles north of that new nature preserve. I figured I might get lucky and find a tourist with a cell phone."

"Instead you got Sideburn," said Ultra Magnus. His words struck something in Sideburn, a flash of hurt showed on his face before being replaced with a sheepish expression.

"Where'd you get this?" Dr. Onishi asked, taking the empty bottle from Koji's hand.

"Oh that… Uhh, we kinda held up a gas station," Koji admitted.

"Excuse me!" T-Ai exclaimed, turning an accusing look on Sideburn.

"What? He was thirsty. He ran what, five, ten miles in about an hour and ten minutes. I was afraid he was going to pass out," Sideburn protested.

"You could have charged it to our expense account," Ultra Magnus pointed out.

"Expense account?"

"Never mind. T-Ai, what's the status on that program?"

T-Ai flew back to her console. "Still stuck."

"Is that my coat?" Dr. Onishi asked, eyeing the tattered remains of his jacket that still clung to his son's shoulders.

"Doctor, I could use your help with this," T-Ai called over her shoulder.

Reluctantly the doctor relinquished his son to Ultra Magnus's care and joined T-Ai by the console.

"If you don't sit down soon, kid, you'll fall down," Ultra Magnus warned.

"Don't want to cramp up," Koji insisted.

"You're gonna cramp up either way, Koji. Sit down," Ultra Magnus instructed.

Koji sat down heavily where he stood. "Ow," he murmured, leaning to the side to rest against Sideburn's leg.

"You gonna be alright?" Ultra Magnus asked.

"I didn't have breakfast," Koji answered.

"I don't suppose Sky-byte fed you before dropping you off."

Koji shook his head. "No."

Sideburn deflated. "I didn't think to grab any food."

"I know we have some food around here somewhere," said Ultra Magnus.

"The mini-fridge is in the rec room," T-Ai tossed over her shoulder before going back to work.

Ultra Magnus looked between Koji and Sideburn. Sideburn anxiously avoided his gaze, staring at Koji instead. Koji was remarkably indifferent to his surroundings, probably more interested in remaining conscious. Assuring himself that it was safe to leave them alone together, Ultra Magnus gave Sideburn a nod and turned back to T-Ai and Dr. Onishi.

* * *

Sideburn stared at Ultra Magnus's back in shock. After yesterday he'd thought the rogue would rather tear out his own optics than let Sideburn anywhere near Koji. Now he was willingly handing Koji's care over to him.

He glanced down at Koji, who was still leaning heavily against his foot. There was no time to question Ultra Magnus's motives. Leaning down, he allowed Koji to climb onto his hand. Gently, he lifted Koji. With one last look at Ultra Magnus he left for the rec room.

AN: That only took what, two years? R&R


	8. All's Well That Ends Well Sorta

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

It took the combined efforts of T-Ai and Dr. Onishi another hour to crack the program that was overriding their control of the Global Space Bridge. Ultra Magnus would worry about the connotations of anything developed by the Decepticons or by the Predicons being able to confound T-Ai for any length of time later. Right now he stood poised to welcome his brother back alongside Dr. Onishi and T-Ai.

He'd checked on Koji and Sideburn thirty minutes before. Koji had eaten a granola bar and drank another bottle of Gatorade before curling up on a cot in the rec room and drifting off to sleep. Sideburn was sitting loyally by his side, focused on the boy's breathing as though he was worried it would stop if his attention wavered for an instant. Ultra Magnus had left Koji to his rest and Sideburn to his vigil. He could handle briefing Optimus on the situation. If the Autobot leader wanted a more detailed report, it could wait until Koji woke up.

"Whenever you're ready, Magnus," T-Ai said, inputting the final codes.

"Go ahead," he ordered.

"Re-routing all Autobots in transit back to base," T-Ai announced. "Opening communication channels. Optimus, are you there?"

"_T-Ai?_" came the reply over the comm.

"Optimus," the AI exclaimed happily. "It's good to hear your voice."

"_Status report._"

"The problem with the Global Space Bridge has been fixed. We're ready for you to come home," T-Ai informed him.

"_We'll be there momentarily,_" the Autobot leader replied.

"We're waiting for you," said T-Ai as the comm. channel closed.

"You didn't mention that Koji's safe," Dr, Onishi noted.

"We don't know that Megatron doesn't have some way of monitoring our communications right now," said Ultra Magnus. "Letting Megatron know that we have Koji might be tipping our hand."

"He released Koji. Wouldn't he have guessed that Koji would have returned to us as soon as he was able?"

"Sky-byte released Koji, and even then a good ways from civilization. We have no idea what Megatron wanted done with him," Ultra Magnus answered.

"Sky-byte is loyal to Megatron," T-Ai reminded him. "I can't see him disobeying orders, even for Koji."

"Sky-byte spent a whole day being gawked at, poked and prodded at a water park to make Koji feel better. I'm willing to bet he'd creatively interpret an order or two for him too," Ultra Magnus revealed.

"I hadn't heard about that," Dr. Onishi muttered.

"It was last summer. Sky-byte was on his best behavior and I told him that if he came anywhere near Koji again it would be the last thing he ever did. To the best of my knowledge today is the first time since then that he's actually sought Koji out," Ultra Magnus said.

Dr. Onishi pinched the bridge of his nose, clearly displeased with this new information. "Early August? He asked me to go with him to the park but Optimus needed some information about Fortress Maximus's original landing site. Damnit, when he told me he found someone else to go with I thought he meant Carl or Jenny."

"He meant a Predicon," said Ultra Magnus bluntly.

Dr. Onishi sighed. "I'm taking a vacation after this," the scientist declared. "I haven't been fishing in years. Koji and I haven't been camping in ages either. A nice father-son camping trip sounds good right about now."

"If you can peel Sideburn away from him long enough to get Koji out of town," Ultra Magnus snorted.

"If he wants to play pack mule, he's more than welcome to accompany us," Dr. Onishi replied.

"That's assuming Koji accepts his apology," T-Ai pointed out. "That's also assuming Sideburn apologizes."

"Oh, he'll apologize," Ultra Magnus said. "The only question is if Koji'll let him know before or after the apology that he's forgiven." Koji had already forgiven the young mech, though Ultra Magnus didn't doubt that the two had a long way to go before they could get their friendship totally back on track.

Conversation ceased until the Global Space Bridge opened on the far wall, releasing Optimus and the others. Optimus paused on the threshold, taking in the scene. Then he strode forward.

"Any further communications from the Megatron?" he asked, taking his place in front of the main computer.

"No, Optimus," T-Ai answered, following him.

"No sign of Koji?"

"Actually," T-Ai began, only to be interrupted by an incoming transmission. Megatron's face appeared on the screen a moment later.

"I see you made it home safely," Megatron remarked. The thin line of his mouth was the only outward sign of his displeasure.

"What do you want now Megatron?" Optimus demanded.

"You still haven't complied with my demands," said Megatron.

"Why should I?"

"Maybe I'll tell you where to find what's left of the boy. I'm sure that would be a comfort to his father," Megatron sneered.

Optimus stiffened. "What?"

"Well after I had you convinced, there was really no need to hang onto the boy," Megatron gloated. "But I'd be more than willing to give you his remains in exchange for a few concessions."

Glancing back, Ultra Magnus caught sight of Dr. Onishi rolling his eyes, the gesture and stance identical to the one he associated with Koji when the boy was irritated. Oddly, none of the others noticed, though they must have been expecting some sort of outburst from Dr. Onishi at the cold announcement of his son's death.

"Megatron," Optimus growled.

"What? After I had you trapped I really had no further use for the boy," Megatron said, with a smirk and a shrug.

Before Megatron could continue gloating, the door to the command center slid open to reveal a disgruntled Sideburn. "Could you guys keep it down in here? Koji's trying to sleep," the mech informed them.

Under any other circumstances seeing Optimus and Megatron wearing identical expressions of shock would have been amusing. Oh who was he kidding? It was hilarious anyway. Too bad Koji couldn't see it.

"Sleep? What is sleep?" Koji grumbled, following Sideburn in with yet another sports drink in his hand.

"You were saying?" Ultra Magnus asked, turning back to the viewscreen.

Megatron's face twisted into a sneer. "I won't make the same mistake twice," he declared before cutting the transmission.

With Megatron dealt with for the moment, the Autobots turned to stare at Koji again.

"What?" Koji asked.

* * *

He'd miscalculated. He put too much faith in Sky-byte's loyalty being solely to him. He never took into account that the boy might have inspired some as well. Next time, he would have one of his less soft-sparked warriors take care of the less pleasant aspects of disposing of prisoners who had lost their value.

In the meantime he needed to regroup and refine his plans. This latest failure would set him back but not too badly. He could still recoup his loses.

First he would have to deal with Sky-byte's insubordination.

AN: Believe it or not, this has been half written since early February. Not the final chapter, I'll be writing an epilogue eventually. ConCrit happily accepted


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